I cannot emphasize how much I welcome your voices of calm reason at a time when American politics is dominated on the one hand by a vicious, dishonest, narcissistic, misogynistic demagogue (Trump), and on the other by a corrupt, senile, intellectually-challenged, amoral political hack (Biden). That you skewer each ma…
I cannot emphasize how much I welcome your voices of calm reason at a time when American politics is dominated on the one hand by a vicious, dishonest, narcissistic, misogynistic demagogue (Trump), and on the other by a corrupt, senile, intellectually-challenged, amoral political hack (Biden). That you skewer each man with more or less equal joie de vivre is in my opinion proof of your own decency, integrity and political sanity.
For that reason I seek your guidance on how I should cast my vote in November 2024 if the choice is between these two moral reprobates. Having absorbed from Homage to Catalonia, George Orwell's memoir on the Spanish Civil War, the lesson that in politics and in life one has to make unpleasant choices involving gradations of evil ("The communists were bad, but the fascists were worse"), I sometimes feel obliged to bite the bullet, and as a conservative who thought much of what Trump did as president was beneficial, vote for him over Biden. But what if Trump in 2023 is even worse than Trump in 2020 or 2016, and in fact is now no better than Biden or, for that matter, Hillary Clinton? It seems to me that Trump has so degenerated ethically since his presidency ended that his positions on issues are now nothing more than reflections of his political needs: because Ron DeSantis has gone after Disney for its wokeness, Trump supports Disney.
What I am asking is whether it is ever the case that contending candidates for political office are exactly equally abhorrent, and that not voting for either of them is not just a defensible option but the only proper and ethical one? Or should I try, in this instance, to find some difference between Biden and Trump that would warrant my voting for one or the other?
I am genuinely perplexed by my dilemma, which I suspect afflicts many of your other listeners, and welcome any wisdom you might wish to share in this regard.
With my enormous gratitude for your calling out the unconditional and mindless obedience with which millions of American voters blindly support the two leading candidates for the presidency,
Thanks for the reference to the Orwell book! I'll be sure to read it. I've read most of his other books and many of his essays. He's extremely insightful and a skilled writer.
There definitely is a difference between Trump and President Biden. A large factor - frequently a decisive one - in distinguishing them is one's politics. As a moderate liberal, I see President Biden markedly different from you and most here.
If Trump is elected, this time his inner liberal might come out. His fantasies notwithstanding, he knows it'll be his last hurrah. He might also take revenge on the so-called RINOs and never-Trumpers. Why not leave with a bang?
Dear Bernie and John,
I cannot emphasize how much I welcome your voices of calm reason at a time when American politics is dominated on the one hand by a vicious, dishonest, narcissistic, misogynistic demagogue (Trump), and on the other by a corrupt, senile, intellectually-challenged, amoral political hack (Biden). That you skewer each man with more or less equal joie de vivre is in my opinion proof of your own decency, integrity and political sanity.
For that reason I seek your guidance on how I should cast my vote in November 2024 if the choice is between these two moral reprobates. Having absorbed from Homage to Catalonia, George Orwell's memoir on the Spanish Civil War, the lesson that in politics and in life one has to make unpleasant choices involving gradations of evil ("The communists were bad, but the fascists were worse"), I sometimes feel obliged to bite the bullet, and as a conservative who thought much of what Trump did as president was beneficial, vote for him over Biden. But what if Trump in 2023 is even worse than Trump in 2020 or 2016, and in fact is now no better than Biden or, for that matter, Hillary Clinton? It seems to me that Trump has so degenerated ethically since his presidency ended that his positions on issues are now nothing more than reflections of his political needs: because Ron DeSantis has gone after Disney for its wokeness, Trump supports Disney.
What I am asking is whether it is ever the case that contending candidates for political office are exactly equally abhorrent, and that not voting for either of them is not just a defensible option but the only proper and ethical one? Or should I try, in this instance, to find some difference between Biden and Trump that would warrant my voting for one or the other?
I am genuinely perplexed by my dilemma, which I suspect afflicts many of your other listeners, and welcome any wisdom you might wish to share in this regard.
With my enormous gratitude for your calling out the unconditional and mindless obedience with which millions of American voters blindly support the two leading candidates for the presidency,
Jay Bergman
Professor of History
Central Connecticut State University
New Britain CT 06050
Thanks Jay. I've added this question to this week's Q&A.
Thanks for the reference to the Orwell book! I'll be sure to read it. I've read most of his other books and many of his essays. He's extremely insightful and a skilled writer.
There definitely is a difference between Trump and President Biden. A large factor - frequently a decisive one - in distinguishing them is one's politics. As a moderate liberal, I see President Biden markedly different from you and most here.
If Trump is elected, this time his inner liberal might come out. His fantasies notwithstanding, he knows it'll be his last hurrah. He might also take revenge on the so-called RINOs and never-Trumpers. Why not leave with a bang?